Margaret Archer (sociologist)

Margaret Archer is a British sociologist known for her work on how individuals and society influence each other. She emphasized the importance of "agency," meaning people's capacity to make choices and act independently, within social structures like traditions, institutions, and culture. Archer argued that social change happens through a process she called "morphogenesis," where individual actions can reshape society over time, rather than society merely shaping individuals or vice versa. Her ideas help us understand how personal decisions and larger social forces interact dynamically, affecting both individual lives and societal development.